UFC Fight Night 26 Play-by-Play: Diego Brandao vs. Daniel Pineda

Diego Brandao vs. Daniel Pineda

Round 1: Pineda takes the center of the cage. He rushes in with a flurry. Brandao lands a counter left hand. Brandao delivers a side kick to the body. Brandao lands a right hand. Pineda may be hurt. Brandao lands a flying knee. Pineda is on wobbly legs. Brandao jumps in with another flying knee. Pineda fires back. Brandao lands a right hand. Pineda lands a combination. Brandao goes to the body with a left hand. Brandao lands a combination. He moves forward with a flurry. Pineda eats the shots. They clinch and Brandao takes Pineda down. Brandao lands a knee to the body and Pineda gets to his feet. Pineda delivers an outside leg kick. Brandao answers with a right hand. Pineda lands an elbow on the inside. He goes to the body with a left hand. The pace has slowed in the closing moments of the round. MMAWeekly scores the round 10-9 for Brandao.

Round 2: They touch gloves to start the round. Pineda moves in with punches. Brandao changes levels and takes the fight to the ground. He lands short punches to the body of Pineda. Pineda works for submissions from the bottom but Brandao stands and backs away. Brandao lands to the body and takes Pineda down. Brandao postures up and lands an elbow. Pineda applies a kimura and uses it to sweep Brandao. Pineda is in the mount position. Pineda lands a series of elbows. Pineda lands punches. Brandao rolls to his side and back to his back to get to half guard. He works his way back to full guard. Brandao isolates a leg. Pineda defends it and maintains top control. Pineda lands to the body. The round ends. MMAWeekly scores the round 10-9 for Pineda.

Round 3: They exchange jabs to start the final round. Brandao has slowed considerably. Brandao drives forward with a double leg takedown. Brandao lets him up. Brandao throws a right hand and uses it to close the distance and secure a takedown. Pineda stands but Brandao has his back. They separate. Brandao lands a right hand. Pineda pushes forward but Brandao changes levels and takes him down. He lands a solid elbow from the top position. Pineda stands. Brandao has his back and drags Pineda back to the ground. Pineda scrambles back to his feet and lands a superman punch. He misses with a right hand and Brandao ducks under and takes him down. The referee stands them up. Brandao lands a high kick at the bell. MMAWeekly scores the round 10-9 for Brandao.

The judges score the fight for Brandao by unanimous decision. All three judges’ scorecards read 29-28.